In this section

7. THE ABBEY OF CIRENCESTER

In the reign of Edward the Confessor there
was a collegiate church of secular canons at
Cirencester, (fn. 1) but it is impossible to write of its
origin with any certainty. When Christianity
was introduced into the province of the Hwiccas
in the middle of the seventh century, the Roman
city of Corinium still lay waste. (fn. 2) On the
authority of a manuscript, which cannot now be
traced, Collinson declared that the minster was
founded by Alwyn, a Saxon thane, in the reign
of King Egbert. (fn. 3) In the middle of the thirteenth
century the tradition of the monastery was that
it had been founded for three hundred years. (fn. 4)
The college was but slenderly endowed, possessing
in the reign of Edmund the Confessor, and again
in 1086, only two hides of land in the hundred of
Cirencester, six acres of meadow, and a vill in
Wick, besides a portion of wood given by King
William. (fn. 5) The dean of Cirencester (fn. 6) was Regenbald, the chancellor of Edward the Confessor,
who has been called the first great pluralist; (fn. 7) in
1086 he held sixteen churches, and lands in five
different counties.

Henry I was a great benefactor of the Order
of Augustinian canons, which was first established
in England in 1108. (fn. 8) At Cirencester, as in a
number of other minsters, they were introduced
in place of the secular canons. In 1117 Henry I
began to build a new church and monastery at
Cirencester. (fn. 9) Though the church was not dedicated until 1176, (fn. 10) the buildings were so far
advanced in 1131 that Serlo was consecrated as
the first abbot, and the Augustinian canons
entered into possession of them. (fn. 11) In 1133
Henry I gave a charter to the abbot and convent,
granting them all the possessions of Regenbald. (fn. 12)
The endowment included two hides in Cirencester, a third part of the toll from the Sunday
market, two-thirds of the tithe of the royal
demesne of Cirencester, and the whole tithe of
the parish; the churches of Preston, Driffield,
Ampney St. Mary, and Cheltenham, besides lands
in those places, and at Norcote, Driffield, Wadle,
Aldsworth, Elmstone, and Wick in Gloucestershire; the churches of Latton, Eisy, Penesey, and
Avebury, with lands in those places, and two
houses in Cricklade in Wiltshire; the churches
of Milborne, Frome, and Wellow, and lands in
Somerset; the church of Pulham with ten hides,
wood and meadow in Dorsetshire; the churches
of Cookham, Bray, Hagbourne, Shrivenham,
besides ten hides at Eston in Berkshire; Boicote,
with one hide and a mill in Oxfordshire; the
churches of Rowell and Brigstock in Northamptonshire; and three messuages in Winchester.
The king added from his own demesne 'the sheriff's
hide,' in Cirencester, for gardens and a mill; a
stream and the wood of Oakley, reserving to
himself the right of hunting and of making
assarts. He also reserved among Regenbald's
possessions the life interests of Roger, bishop of
Salisbury, William FitzWarin, and Nicholas,
nephew of the bishop of Winchester; and he
safeguarded the life interest of the secular canons
in their prebends.

During the greater part of the reign of
Henry II the abbot and convent held the manor
of Cirencester of the crown at a fee farm rent. (fn. 13)
In 1190 they purchased from Richard I the
town and manor of Cirencester with Minety,
the seven hundreds, for £100, and a fee farm
rent of £30 a year. (fn. 14) In 1203 the abbot bought
the right of excluding the sheriff from his
liberties except for pleas of the crown. (fn. 15) In 1222
Henry III allowed the abbot to build a gaol. (fn. 16)
The trade of the town, which increased rapidly in
the twelfth and thirteenth centuries, (fn. 17) was entirely
under the abbot's control. He took the profits
of the weekly market in virtue of Richard I's
grants of the manor. In 1215 Abbot Alexander
Neckham obtained the right of holding a fair for
eight days at the feast of All Saints, (fn. 18) in 1253
Abbot Roger secured the privilege of holding
another fair on the vigil, feast, and morrow of
St. Thomas the Martyr, and the five following
days. (fn. 19) These successive grants of privileges put
the town entirely into the abbot's power. (fn. 20)

Alexander Neckham, one of the most learned
men of his age in England, was abbot from 1213
to 1217. He was a Master of Arts of the
University of Paris, and had taught in the
grammar school at Dunstable and St. Albans
before he entered the monastery at Cirencester. (fn. 21)
He was interested in science rather than in history,
and in his chief work, 'De Naturis Rerum,' (fn. 22) he
aimed at compiling a manual of scientific knowledge. There is no evidence to gauge his influence at Cirencester, no writings of the canons
are known to have survived, and it nowhere
appears that they kept a chronicle.

Cirencester was subject to the visitation of the
bishops of Worcester. The letter written by
Bishop Giffard, after his visitation of the monastery in 1276, reveals maladministration and weak
government. (fn. 23) Under the rule of Abbot Henry
de Munden, the prior, William de Haswell,
had exercised, or perhaps usurped, great power,
and it is likely that he held the office of treasurer.
At the visitation he was accused of being a
drunkard, to the damage of the house and the
scandal of many. He was negligent and remiss
in spiritual and temporal matters, being himself
a man of evil life. Discipline was relaxed, and
he was charged with having spent a great part of
the substance of the house on his kinsfolk; with
alienating the silver vessels and ornaments of the
church; with pledging the credit of the house
for debts of other persons. The bishop was told
that owing to his conduct the monastery was so
seriously embarrassed that the most discreet abbot
would find difficulty in redeeming its fortunes.
In 1298 Giffard restored the church of Ampney
St. Mary to the monastery on the ground that it
had been appropriated since the foundation of the
house, and had been lost through the nepotism of a
former abbot. (fn. 24) When the prior of Worcester
attempted to visit the abbey in 1302, during
the voidance of the see after the death of Giffard,
he was refused admittance because the house had
already been visited twice within two years. (fn. 25)
During the rule of Abbot Henry de Hamptonet
there was a crisis in the relations of the convent
with the town. (fn. 26) In 1301 Edward I issued a
commission of oyer and terminer to William de
Bereford and Henry Spigurnel on the complaint
of the poor men of Cirencester that the abbot,
two canons, and others, had extorted from them,
for the first time, great sums of money by undue
distraints; had entered their houses, assaulted
and imprisoned some of them; consumed the
goods of some, and carried away the goods of
others; taken some of their beasts and impounded
others, detaining them until a great part died of
hunger, and driving some to places unknown. (fn. 27)
A number of tenants attempted to avoid the
obligation of taking their corn to be ground at
the abbot's mills by using handmills in their
houses. At different times between 1300 and
1305, the abbot's bailiff and others broke into
the houses of several men of Cirencester and
seized their mill-stones; some they broke, others
they carried off to the monastery. (fn. 28) When the
jurors presented their complaint before the
justices of Traylbaston at Gloucester in 1305,
they replied that it was a question of tenure.
The town was at the abbot's mercy, and it was
agreed that twenty men of Cirencester should
execute a deed on behalf of themselves and the
whole community, stating that they had made
a false complaint, and binding themselves to pay
100 marks to the abbot. (fn. 29)

In 1306 the convent secured the important
privilege of retaining the custody of the property
of the house during the voidance on the death
of an abbot. For the right of excluding the
escheators they covenanted to pay the king £100
for a voidance of three months or less. (fn. 30) In the
following year the abbot died. Forty canons were
present at the election of Hamptonet's successor,
Adam de Brokenborough. (fn. 31) It took place during
a voidance of the see of Worcester, and probably
owing to some informality in the proceedings the
prior of Worcester declared the election invalid,
but understanding that Adam de Brokenborough
was 'a discreet man, esteemed for his learning
and virtuous habits and actions . . . and circumspect in spiritual and temporal matters,' he
collated him to the office of abbot. (fn. 32) The penalty
for disregard of the statute of mortmain was
heavy, and in 1313 the abbot and convent were
compelled to pay a fine of £200 for the royal
pardon because they had received a number of
parcels of lands, tenements, and shops in Cirencester without the late king's leave to acquire
them in mortmain. (fn. 33) In 1314 they paid another
fine of £20 for obtaining the appropriation of
Ampney St. Mary from Bishop Giffard without
licence, (fn. 34) and £5 for acquiring lands in Minety in
mortmain in the reign of Edward I. (fn. 35) Heavy
law costs were incurred in defending the abbot's
rights to take tallage from his tenants. In 1312
Master Nicholas de Stratton impleaded the abbot
for an illegal tallage, and although according to
the townsmen of Cirencester he was afterwards
beaten and slain by the abbot's servants, the suit
dragged on until 1321, when Edward II granted
a charter confirming the abbot's right. (fn. 36)

In 1325 during the rule of Richard of Charlton
(1320-35), disquieting rumours of evil-living
among the canons reached Cobham, bishop of
Worcester. (fn. 37) Although he had visited the monastery nothing sinister had come to his knowledge.
Nevertheless, on account of popular reports,
which may, indeed, have been spread by the
resentful townsmen, the bishop bade the abbot
discover the truth of the matter; if any of the
canons were found guilty and remained contumacious their names were to be sent to him.
The bishop's aid was not invoked.

About 1342 the strife with the town broke
out again. (fn. 38) Owing to the development of the
wool-trade many of the men of Cirencester were
very prosperous, and keenly resented their position as the abbot's tenants. They preferred a
bill of complaint into chancery charging the
abbot, William Hereward, and his predecessors
with encroachments on the king's rights and
their own. In 1342 the abbot and his followers
imprisoned several of the townsmen by pretext
of their suit 'until they made very grievous fines
for their ransoms.' In 1343 twenty men of
Cirencester were summoned to Westminster and
swore to the truth of the bill of complaint. They
declared that the king was the patron of the
parish church, but that since the reign of John
the abbot and convent had taken possession of it.
They also administered the hospitals of St. John
and St. Laurence to their own advantage. Other
encroachments on the rights of the crown were
enumerated; but the townsmen put forward a
monstrous claim on their own behalf. They
swore that Henry I gave a charter to the burgesses of Cirencester granting them the same
liberties as the burgesses of Winchester. They
had only a copy of that charter to produce,
because they alleged that in 1292 the abbot
bribed the burgess who had the custody of it,
got possession of it and burnt it. The charter
was a forgery, though it is possible that it was
first produced when the abbot purchased the
manor from Richard I and the burgesses of
Cirencester were fined for false presentment.
The case was several times adjourned. Finally
the abbot compounded with the king for £300
and obtained a charter in 1343 confirming and
defining his franchises. (fn. 39) Abbot Hereward had
other claims on the gratitude of the canons
besides the victory over the townsmen. (fn. 40) He
freed the convent from the heavy load of debt
with which it was burdened at the time of his
election in 1336. In the first ten years of his rule
a new nave was built, and houses within the
precincts and on the manors were erected at
great cost. In 1346 he made provision for the
maintenance of a chaplain to sing mass daily in
the Lady Chapel, and for the keeping of his
anniversary. Thus shortly before the Black
Death the monastery was very prosperous.
There is no record of the mortality among the
canons or in the town of Cirencester. Bishop
Wulstan de Bransford died on 8 August, (fn. 41) and
only a week afterwards the prior of Worcester
began to exercise his right of visiting the diocese
during the voidance of the see. (fn. 42) In October he
proposed to visit Cirencester, but the abbot and
convent declined to receive him on the plea that
they were only subject to visitation by a papal
legate, the metropolitan, and the bishop of the
diocese. (fn. 43) They were supported by the official
of the court of Canterbury. However, an agreement was made shortly afterwards strictly defining and limiting the prior's rights. He might
only inquire whether the mass of the Virgin was
celebrated daily with devotion, and whether a
chapter was held each day. He might only
enter the house with one monk and one secular
clerk. His procuration was fixed at 4 marks,
he had no right to any hospitality, and he could
not lodge in the monastery with his household
and carriages. It is probable that the discipline
of the house was lax, Abbot Hereward was an
old man, and in 1350 Edward III exempted
him from attendance at Parliament on account
of his age and infirmity. (fn. 44) In 1351 Thoresby,
bishop of Worcester, wrote to him grieving that
there were evil reports of the canons, and that
he did not do his duty as abbot. (fn. 45) Thoresby
told him to reform the convent by his own
power without appealing to the bishop for help.
He ought to forbid the canons to leave the
kingdom on any business without permission,
and to see that, unless they were fulfilling the
duties of their office, they remained within the
cloister. He should compel the officers to render
a yearly account of their receipts and expenditure. Abbot Hereward died soon afterwards,
and his successor, Ralph of Estcote, was elected in
May, 1352. (fn. 46) Owing to the scarcity of labour
the abbot and convent had, perhaps, unusual
difficulty in exacting the services of the townsmen of Cirencester. In 1370 they obtained an
exemplification under the great seal of the record
of 1225, in which the services of tenants of the
manor were defined. (fn. 47)

Lack of governance and discipline characterized
the rule of Nicholas of Ampney when Bishop
Wakefield visited the monastery in 1378. (fn. 48)
William Tresham held the office of sub-prior,
treasurer, and keeper of the parish church. The
bishop ordered that another keeper should be
appointed because in the discharge of that office
he was often outside the monastery. Within
six days the abbot was bidden to choose another
canon to act as treasurer with William Tresham.
The whole of the revenues from manors,
churches, and other sources were to be paid to
the treasurers instead of to any other officers.
The almoner was to be removed from office on
account of the scandal caused by his maladministration. The precentor was also to be removed.
Within six days the abbot was to make new
appointments to the offices of almoner, precentor,
and keeper of the parish church, with the advice
and consent of the older and wiser canons. The
bishop found that the bread was badly baked,
and that the beer was weak. He enjoined the
abbot to see that the cellarer provided good
bread, fish, and beer. The conduct of some of
the canons had given rise to grave scandal,
among them the keeper of the parish church of
Cheltenham, who was to be deprived of his
office. The abbot was ordered to see that these
disobedient brethren did not go beyond the
precincts and that they underwent canonical
penance. He must have succeeded in restoring
order for some years, as when Courtenay, archbishop of Canterbury, came to Cirencester on
metropolitical visitation in 1384 he apparently
found no cause for censure. (fn. 49) Yet in 1389 the
abbots of Lanthony Secunda and Oseney received
a special commission from the general chapter of
Augustinian canons to visit the monastery of
Cirencester on account of disorders therein. (fn. 50)

In 1385 some of the townsfolk attacked the
abbey. Richard II issued a commission to the
keepers of the peace in Gloucestershire upon
information that divers of the king's lieges of
Cirencester had assembled and gone to the abbey
and done unheard-of things to the abbot and
convent and threatened to do all the damage
they could. (fn. 51) The townsfolk were kept in check
for a few years, but in 1400, when they rendered
Henry IV a signal service by crushing the rebellion of the earls of Salisbury and Kent, whom
they beheaded in the market-place, (fn. 52) they seized
the opportunity to put forward their complaints
against the abbot and his predecessors. (fn. 53) At the
king's command an inquisition was held by the
sheriff. Five juries from the town and the
neighbourhood testified against the abbot, and it
was claimed that the town of Cirencester had
not been parcel of the manor until 1208, when
the abbot compelled the townsmen to perform
villein service. The king's decision was postponed, and there is no record of it. In 1403
the townsmen petitioned Henry IV to allow
them to have a gild merchant. (fn. 54) The sheriff
held an inquisition at Gloucester in 1403, and
twelve knights of the county set forth the abbot's
franchises. Nevertheless, the king gave a
charter to the men of Cirencester granting their
petition, so that the abbot and convent were
obliged to submit. The townsmen established
their gild merchant, and entirely controlled the
trade of the town; but they had no justification
for withholding their services and absenting
themselves from the manorial courts. In 1409
Abbot John Leckhampton obtained a further
confirmation of Richard II's confirmation of the
charters concerning the lands, manors, and liberties of the abbey. (fn. 55) In 1410 Henry IV ratified
the charters of John and Henry III, granting
the right of holding the two yearly fairs to the
abbot. In 1413 the abbot attempted to distrain
for services due to him; a riot followed, and his
officers were beaten and wounded. Henry IV
died on 20 March, and on 5 June the abbot
secured another exemplification of the record of
1225, defining the services of the tenants of the
manor. (fn. 56) The townsmen saw that further
resistance was useless. The abbot impleaded a
number of them for withdrawing their services
for thirteen years, and heavy damages were
awarded. In 1414, with the abbot's consent,
Henry V granted them a general pardon. In
1418 the abbot petitioned that the charter granting the gild merchant might be made void.
The Court of Chancery found that Henry IV's
charter was contrary to the previous rights of
the abbot, and annulled it. The strife thus
ended in the complete triumph of the monastery
over the town.

The history of the monastery during the last
hundred years of its existence is quite obscure.
At a visitation during the voidance of the see of
Worcester in 1428, there were twenty-four
canons, of whom one was a scholar at Oxford. (fn. 57)

In 1534 the abbot and twenty canons subscribed to the royal supremacy. (fn. 58) Five years
later, 19 December, 1539, they surrendered
their house to the royal commissioners. (fn. 59) The
abbot received a pension of £200 a year, the
prior £13 6s. 8d., the cellarer £8, twelve canons
£6 13s. 4d. each, and another £5 6s. 8d., while
William Phelps became vicar of the parish
church. (fn. 60) Wages were paid to 110 officers and
servants of the household. (fn. 61)

In 1535 the clear yearly value of the property
of the monastery was £1,051 7s. 1¼d. (fn. 62) The
abbot also held the office of cellarer, and had
control over £859 17s. 6d. of the revenues.
These were drawn from the bailiwicks of the
town and seven hundreds of Cirencester, the
manors of Cirencester, Minety, Driffield, Preston,
Ampney St. Mary, Nutbeme, Walle, Salperton,
Througham, and lands at Cheltenham, Daglingworth, Shipton Moyne, and Weston Birt, in
Gloucestershire; the manors of Frome and
Milborne Port, in Somerset; Pulham, in Dorsetshire; Latton, in Wiltshire; Shrivenham,
Hagbourne, and Eston, in Berkshire; Bradwell
and Abberbury in Oxfordshire; Brigstock and
Rowell in Northamptonshire; rents in London,
Bristol, Cirencester; and the rectories of Cirencester, Cheltenham, Frome, Milborne Port,
Latton, Wellow, Milton, Avebury, Eton in Wiltshire, Cookham, Bray, Hagbourne, Stanyarn,
Brigstock, Rowell, besides tithes in other places.

13.
Brist. and Glouc. Arch. Soc. Trans. ix, 298. For
the history of the relations between the monastery and
town of Cirencester cf. Fuller, The Manor and
Town (Brist. and Glouc. Arch. Soc. Trans. 298-344),
drawn from the chartularies of the monastery, now
at Thirlstane House, Cheltenham, as well as from
public records.